Chamber News

A Fort Lauderdale publisher and a hospitality leader were honored at the Greater Fort Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce’s 103rd annual meeting recently attended by 500 business leaders, elected officials and guests.

Ina Lee, publisher of Travelhost Media, received the Carolyn M. Michaels’ Leadership Award for nearly four decades of service within the Chamber, particularly focused on beach and hotel related expansion. The award is named after the Chamber's executive vice president who has been at the organization for three decades. Ms. Lee is currently the Chair of the Chamber’s Beach Council and serves on the organization’s Board of Directors.

“The wonderful honor given to me was most treasured because it is named after Carolyn Michaels,” Lee said. “I have never met anyone in my lifetime who exemplifies service with humility like her.”

For increasing Chamber membership by 11 percent, Heiko Dobrikow, executive vice president of the Las Olas Company and general manager of the Riverside Hotel, was honored by 2012 Chairman Andreas Ioannou, Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort.

"This was a team effort by our wonderful business development staff and our members giving strong leads," Dobrikow said. "Being part of a Chamber that gets it makes all the difference."

Ioannou turned the gavel over to 2013 chairman, Chuck Mohr, senior vice president with BB&T. Mohr recognized Ioannou for his leadership as he outlined his focus for 2013 on issues related to beach renourishment, expansion of Port Everglades and the Convention Center. The Chamber will also focus on more regional consensus management to give South Florida a strong voice in Tallahassee and Washington, DC.

A keynote speech was presented by Kelly King, CEO and Chairman of BB&T Corporation, ending the meeting on a high note in motivating attendees by saying, "yesterday is in the past, tomorrow is never promised, so we must strive for excellence today."

STAY INFORMED, You can sign up to receive email updates for the following groups:Beach Council, Downtown Council, GLBX, Non-Profits, Weston Council and our General Chamber Newsletter. We will be adding more lists in the weeks to come. SIGN UP HERE

SIGN UP FOR A LEADS GROUP: It's easy, click here to sign up for leads groups. Leads groups are easily one of the best and most effective ways to network within the Chamber. Take advantage of the different leads groups available by signing up for one that is the right fit for your business and schedule. You can sign up on our website in the leads groups page or in the link above.

Chamber Marquee Annual EventsYou can find more information and register for all Chamber events on our website www.ftlchamber.com

Chamber EventsYou can find more information and register for all Chamber events on our website www.ftlchamber.com